I was lacking motivation to get on the bike this morning as it the last time I’ll have with Elizabeth for a month. Eventually, I got everything packed up and Elizabeth drove me over the Chesapeake Bay bridge to my starting point for the day at Sandy Point State Park.
It was an emotional goodbye with Elizabeth for me. She is an amazing wife and I’m going to miss her terribly.
Today’s route was a lot hillier than yesterday. I used the full range of gears on my bike. I started off biking through Annapolis. Saw the Naval Academy from the bridge. They don’t let you bike on the academy property, so I kept going.
I found myself biking past the Naval Academy stadium and I stopped to walk around. They must have been expecting me, because the gate was open and I was able to walk down to the field.
After leaving Annapolis I was out on some country roads for a while.
I was very happy with the route that Komoot put together. Lots of turns, but decent roads with good shoulders and also lots of bike paths.
The only problem I had was about 20 miles in when I came across a road closed sign. It was clear that this sign had been there a while. I was curious as to why I was routed that way. I pulled over and started looking for alternate routes, everything seemed to add several miles to my day. I flagged down a nice lady who was coming up the closed road and she told me that I could bike through no problem. So, that’s what I did. Problem solved.
The rest of the ride into Washington DC was on a series of bike paths, bike lanes, and neighborhood streets. It is a hilly place!!
Made it to the Capital and chilled out on the National Mall for a while.
Eventually, I made my way to the C&O Tow Path trail and made my way down the trail. The trail is next to the old C&O canal and remnants of the canal infrastructure can be seen all along the trail. The trail also runs along the Potomac River.
About 5:30 I pulled into one of the many hiker/biker campsites on the trail. Once I got off my bike I was attacked by mosquitoes and quickly located and applied insect repellent. Seems all that stagnant water in the canal is a perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes. 🙂
I had bought a sandwich for dinner when I stopped for lunch, so after making overnight oatmeal for my breakfast tomorrow I retired to my tent to escape the mosquitoes and relax.
For the day, I biked almost 70 miles with 2,400 feet of climbing. Tomorrow the weather forecast is calling for thunderstorms to come through mid-morning. So I’ll be up early and packed up before the storm and hopefully have found some shelter to wait out the storm.
Glad you got to visit my alma mater, USNA. Sorry they wouldn’t let you bike through the “Yard.” I guess that might interrupt the daily routine of the”spoiled and pampered pets of Uncle Sam” (the midshipmen). You probably rode right past gate eight and along the route the brigade of midshipmen march to the stadium for fall football games.
Great reading about your epic adventure! Keep up the good work!
Love real life heroes…. Love that you follow your passion. Oregon may seem like long journey but our journey on Earth is much shorter…. Ride like wind, Big o